Dr. Christopher Strickland
I am an Associate Professor in the Mathematics Department with an adjunct appointment in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. My primary interest is in mathematical ecology - more specifically, modeling and analyzing complex systems in ecology and substance use epidemiology (particularly opioids and alcohol).
​
I utilize a diverse range of tools from applied mathematics, including mathematical modeling, dynamical systems, statistical inference, and scientific computing, and my research typically involves close interdisciplinary collaboration. I have particular interest in bringing mathematical methods to the field of organismal ecology, especially in the context of behavior, dispersal, and social interaction. Specific interests include addiction epidemiology, individual-based modeling approaches to the study of collective behavior (on land and in fluid flow around immersed structures), and novel modeling approaches in population ecology.
RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS
In collaboration with Oak Ridge National Lab and the VA, we both develop and mathematically analyze population-level and individual-based models of the opioid epidemic based on location-specific data. These models help predict the epidemic's trajectory for a given community and quantify risk factors that will inform patient treatment decisions.
Introducing Planktos, the open-source, agent-based modeling software in Python targeted at 2D and 3D fluid environments with immersed structures. Agents in this modeling framework are relatively tiny organisms in sufficiently low densities that their effect on the surrounding fluid flow can be considered negligible. This library can be used for scientific exploration and quantification of collective and emergent behavior.
